Listen!
“What do cicadas sound like?” asks sixteen-year-old Georgia, who wasn’t born last time they came.
Everyone’s answer is different.
“Like the song of an ice cream truck,” remembers twenty-year-old brother Bob.
“Like the creak of a swinging hammock,” claims Dad, already planning where to hang theirs.
“Like the clink of ice in fresh lemonade, served under the shadiest tree,” smiles Mom, making a grocery list.
“Like letting go of the rope swing and splashing into the river,” exclaims Uncle Terry, wondering if he’s too old now for that adventure.
“Like glorious summer,” pronounces Grandpa, a man of few words.
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with Googlehahaha lol. I enjoyed reading how they compared the sound of Cicadas. That was funny. Too many Cicadas here in our place. Making some noise like the sound of a chainsaw cutting a woods during noontime.
Hello Lotchie – what a funny description of your cicadas! Cicadas here in the American South probably mean something different to us than to you in the Philippines, where it’s always nice and warm! These cicadas that are coming now only come once every seventeen years, for one thing. In addition, we have four seasons here, with winters full of ice and snow and cold. This past winter was especially bad, with… Read more »
Okay, I understand, Julie. We have different Cicadas.
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleWe don’t have cicadas in the UK; not sure we have summers anymore either. It’s lovely how the sound of them brings different memories to everyone.
Hello Carrie. You don’t have summers anymore? You mean you don’t have hot weather? Surely you must …. We definitely have summers here! I have to say I haven’t heard any cicadas yet, though the news is full of them. It’s not officially summer until the Solstice, so I guess they’ll start up soon. I especially love hearing them at night, mingling with the frogs in the pond.
Julie, I like how each character experienced the same sound differently. I actually Googled what the Cicadas sound like where I stay and it sounded like a bell-choir! Beautiful!
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleOh wow, Marianna – a bell-choir! I love your comment. Thanks for reading.
It’s fascinating how people associate cicadas with summer and then summer with various memories, different for each individual.
It’s so strange that cicadas appear exactly every 17 years, like clockwork. Here in Colombia we have them constantly, so I am used to their presence just like I’m used to summer all year round.
Hi Christer – I think just the one species of cicadas, Brood X, comes every 17 years. There are others that come on other cycles – one is on an 11 year cycle, one is 13. And some come every year. I read that these prime number recurrences are to throw off predators, who I guess can’t calculate prime numbers. And of course we have crickets, katydids, and all kinds of night-singers… Read more »
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To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleThis is such a cheery summer story that I really enjoyed. I like how they all had their own interpretations of the sound. I especially love how the Grandpa in your story described the cicadas.
I’m so glad you enjoyed this story, Daisy. I still haven’t heard the cicadas, but they will come soon, I’m sure!
Let’s hope they do! I have never seen one before so I can only imagine how much of a special and wonderful time it must be.
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